The Birds and the Bunns
by Tancong
Summary: Two lovebirds find themselves in the countryside of Zurich, all alone to enjoy each other and the wonderful sounds of nature. My piece for the Gency Zine! I was super, ultra blessed to get to collab with usarei who made a piece so beautiful that I had to stop writing to cry from happiness. Click on the picture to go to her blog!


"What do they mean by 'the lake was blue'? Is it some form of literary symbolism for the sadness the character felt?" inquired the curious young man.

"No, I think the lake was actually blue Genji. Not everything has to be so deep and filled with literary elements. Besides, wouldn't he be happy to be there with his lover?"

Genji considered this point for a moment as his own lover paused in her reading to give him an inquisitive frown coupled with a raised eyebrow as if to highlight her annoyance over the fact his meddlesome question broke her immersion, but the amused smile playing at the edge of her lips told a different tale. His brows eventually raised up, as if conceding the fair point and smiled innocently over at Angela. With that, her frown disappeared as she couldn't help but smile back, playfully sticking her tongue out at him.

That quickly changed as she retracted it, Genji kissing her gently on the lips soon after before pulling back with a sly smile on his expression. Angela frowned at him for the audacious attempt to stop her from sticking her tongue out at him. While she didn't mind in other scenarios, they were supposed to be enjoying a nice time together in the quiet forest. **Not** trying to ruin the natural beauty and sounds of nature with their own.

"Genji, I thought we had planned on enjoying a quiet evening reading together. I even agreed to be the one doing the reading."

Genji nodded, still smiling sweetly at her as if he was not at fault for anything at all. "We did. And you're doing wonderfully my dear. Your voice is as sweet as ever and the story is lovely."

She continued to gaze at him, trying to find a crack in that smile of his and to break his façade. When she could not, Angela let out a soft sigh and she sunk comfortably back into him with a smile of resignation, right into the crook of his arm that seemed to have been made to fit her perfectly inside.

Genji himself was rather fond of the position as well. The feeling of her soft shoulder against his chest, albeit separated by a single layer of cloth in the form of his shirt, felt heavenly and he wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arm forever. On several occasion, he would run his hand through her hair, down her neatly tied pigtails before coming back to rest at her side once more. It was nothing more than an idle endearing touch but by now, it came naturally to him.

Without a single bit of discomfort, their sitting position placed him slightly above her head, allowing him to kiss her however he wished and enjoy the sweet fragrance of her hair while he was not too busy shuffling around to do so. In that moment, he didn't want to move anywhere and for any reason. The birds around them continued to do their calls and there was a deer in the near distance, gazing at them as if to concede its position as the most serene sight in the forest.

"If you don't keep it down, you're going to scare all the animals away Genji. I'm rather fond of them you know. I know that having a dragon spirit attracts them but if you keep making such a ruckus …" She was reduced to a small indignant noise under his continual assault of small kisses against her forehead and cheek as she tried to lecture him, making her pout angrily at him.

Genji chuckled at the sight before patting her head with his left hand to bring her pout down to a soft frown as she pressed herself toward him. "Alright, alright. I promise to do my best to not scare the animals away. Not the deer, the Bastion peacefully bird-catching nearby, or the small army of bunnies that you've amassed with your adorable charm. Let's keep going."

Angela stuck her tongue out at him before quickly turning toward the open book in her lap once more. There were several bunnies of various sizes around them. Genji was petting one with his right hand as they had their exchange, only now resting it upon his knee once more. Angela had a few by her side as well, some nipping at her dress without any harm and one taking a nap on her foot. Bunnies were pensive creatures and often moved but for now, they all seemed to enjoy the area of Zurich that the two occupied and braved their presence to be there.

Perhaps it was because they sat in a serene area under the shade of a tree, surrounded by safe bushes that they can flee to in case of danger. Maybe the protective aura of the animalistic dragon spirit reassured them. In any case, they were a welcome audience to the couple's time together, despite how much the small fluffy creatures enjoyed hopping around and distracting the lover's hands from their respective spots on their partner or book. Either that or they were quite happily occupying the cozy locations under the couple's legs.

Regardless of the reason, Angela resumed her reading to her audience. Genji gazed down at the book, though he wasn't exactly focused on the words. He was quite fond of simply following along at her reading pace using his ears, opting instead to use his eyes for observing the patterns the words made on the page. His gaze inevitably found its way to her hand, already memorized by his own from how much he held them. He stopped himself from staring at her face for too long, despite how much he enjoyed seeing her soft expression as she read for him.

After a few dozen pages, Angela suddenly fell silent. Genji made a move to turn his head, only to feel her own rest against his shoulder gently. He smiled to himself and nuzzled his cheek against her hair, closing his own eyes in sync with her without a word as the pair enjoyed a brief moment of silence. Angela knew that it was probably just a moment though. While her dear lover was capable of several hours in meditation, he was not that way around her. He always avoided the question somehow, enough times to deter her from trying to understand why.

He was being rather tame actually, seeing as how long he allowed her to just lean against him in that silence. Angela smiled to herself, wondering just how long he would hold out for. The adorable ninja she loved couldn't possibly go for more than 5 minutes without trying to tease his lover. _That_ was a fact she knew for certain.

Despite his cybernetics not having clockwork installed, he acted as predicted when the time came. Angela could barely contain her giggle as he stirred next to her, feeling the movement of his body indicative of a gaze toward her before he moved once more to glance around, doubtlessly searching for something to annoy her with.

"Hey Angela, what's that over there?"

She tried, she really did, to appear annoyed at her lover's antics. However, that proved impossible as she smiled to herself and finally opened her eyes to look at him before following the direction that he was pointing.

"That would be a bird. A sparrow specifically. How quaint for one to visit you."

Genji smiled at her and petted her head as if to reward her for her smart answer. She allowed it for now. After all, despite her insistence against receiving them at the risk of ruining her hair, she loved the feeling of his hand petting her so affectionately.

"What about that one over there?" came another inquisitive point of the finger.

"That's actually still the same sparrow Genji. I'm sure you can keep track of one bird with those trained eyes of yours."

Genji frowned as he looked around once more, his eyes lighting up as he spotted yet another subject of interest. "Ooh, what about that one over there?"

Angela looked over and made an expression of disbelief before sighing, closing her book all the way and setting it on her lap as she turned her head to frown at him. "Genji. That's a squirrel."

Genji squinted at it for a moment, pretending to not notice Angela's intent stare before he smiled sheepishly at her. She pouted at him before being finding herself with a kiss to her forehead. Angela frowned some more, receiving yet another one, before pulling him in by the collar and kissing him on the lips. Satisfied with his pleasantly shocked expression afterward, she smiled at him once more. However, her lover was far from finished with her.

Without missing a beat, he pointed at yet another object in the near distance. "What about those over there Angela?"

Angela sighed softly and looked over, only to whip her head back and glare at Genji. He clearly knew what he was pointing at. He can _clearly_ see what was happening. There was no way he was actually asking about what two birds were. In fact, they were _still_ sparrows.

"Genji, you know fully well what they are and what they're doing."

Genji gave her an inquisitive raise of his eyebrow, though his eyes couldn't hide their glint of mischief. "I'm not sure I follow you, doctor. Could you explain what they're doing to me? Maybe show me an example in human terms and some hands-on training too."

Angela's cheeks flushed as she maintained her glare, turning herself free from the comfortable spot in his arm. "Genji Shimada! We are having a nice date under a tree peacefully reading a book. I thought we agreed that this would be the plan for today."

Genji nodded, "Yes we did. However, we seemed to have finished and I have been entranced instead by your overwhelming beauty and adorable pout. Well, it's a glare now, which, in my opinion, is unwarranted for such a harmless question."

He knew just the right way to poke at her, didn't he? At his praise and coy words, Angela was reduced to a pout as she could not find words to retaliate. So instead, Genji chuckled and leaned in to end his teasing with a gentle kiss to her lips. They stayed there, long past the moment when her expression fully softened and surrendered to her lover's lips.

When they parted breathlessly, Genji gave her a soft smile. "Thank you for the wonderful story, my dear. We'll finish it another day I promise. For now, shall we pack up the tent and keep exploring? Maybe find another field with more bunnies?"

Angela broke eye contact with him, her cheeks still flushed at his words and his proximity, though she nodded her affirmation. Genji smiled and picked her up in his arms, eliciting a yelp of protest and surprise from her before calming her down with a kiss to her forehead. With that, they went to work, packing up their camp in the depth of Zurich. With no one to disturb them and no one to see them, the two were free to love and make love to their heart's content and in any way they deemed fit. Whether it was by a small pond or on a bountiful open field of flowers, nothing could come between them and their sincerest love for each other.

And so, their field of love blossomed into a beautiful forest. A forest full of bunnies, birds, and a Bastion. An unending forest that they could never fully express deep inside their heart.


End file.
